The Magic Of Boldness

The most succesful generals and admirals in history shared one characteristic: they were willing to disregard orders and risk disgrace in order to exploit  rapidly changing circumstances. When the chance came, they recognised an opportunity, weighed the odds swiftly and placed their lives and careers on the line to snacht a victory.

In short, they were bold, often turning a blind eye to previously agreed strategy while ignoring direct instructions from their superiors. As an entrepreneur you are unlikely to have to follow the orders of others, but the fetters of conventional wisdom can prove equally inhibiting.

Fortune favours not just the brave but the bold. Boldness has a kind of genius in it. It relies on the unexpected and can lead to catastrophic defeat because it ignores conventional wisdom, which often proves to be wisdom of a kind. But should boldness succeed, the resulting succes appears all the more devastating in the eyes of startled observers and rivals.

Opportunities to get succesful keep popping up. The more alert one is, the more chance one has of identifying an opportunity; the more preparation one has done, the more artillery one can bring to bear; the more self-belief one can muster, the more certain will be the aim; but the boulder the stroke , the better chance one has of confounding the odds.

All entrepreneurs have a short- or medium-term gameplan, it's the only sensible way to proceed in getting succesful. But should the chance offer itself, that game plan must be hurled aside and the watchword on the road to succes changed to: 'Carpe diem!'

Trust Your Instincts!

This is potentially lethal piece of advice. And yet, for me, it seperates the wannabes from the gonnabes. Perhaps, in the end, it is the difference between an attentive eternal lieutanant and the pirate captain who comes to won the ship.

You are not attempting to be a manager, or even a businessman. You are concerned with the getting of money. You must go with your gut. After that, the managers and the bean counters and financial advisors can take over. But only afterwards.

Trust your instincts. Avoid being a slave to them, but when those instincts are screaming Go! Go! Go! it is time for you to decide whether you really wish to be rich or not. You cannot do this in deliberate, considered manner. You cannot get rich painting by numbers. You can achieve it only as a lone predator: by out-waiting rivals; by remaining alert, constantly sniffing the air; by bringing murderous force to bear upon your prey.

And to do so without consulting anyone or anything but the secret servant of your compulsion.

Share the kill later, by all means. But if you want to get rich, trust your judgement when it calls - and leave those whos job it is to manage your business to pick up the pieces They can have the lesser quality bits.

But the heart and liver are yours!

Cut Loose From People

You have to cut loose to get rich. There isn't any other way. Cut loose from parents and family, obviously. Loose from working for others, except as a short-term reconnaissance expedition and in order to raise a fraction of the capital you will eventually require. And loose from negative influences - those naysayers and Jeremiahs who cover the face of the earth.

These wretchers will tell you, if you listen, of the impossibility - and the foolishness - of trying to make yourself richer than they are. In doing so, they can drain confidence and optimism from you. Surprisingly, such people may include your family, your lover, your husband or wife, or your friends.

It's not that they do not care about you; they may well do. But two fears confront them: they (openly) fear you are placing yourself in harm's way, which cannot be a good thing; and their own timidity. Above all, they do not wish to be faced with the messy chaos that accompanies strenuous effort and risk. They yearn for the familiarity and sense of false security conjured by the status quo.

This is why you must cut loose. Getting rich comes from attitude of mind. It isn't going to happen if things drift on pretty much the way they are right now.

Get Started Now!

There is no point in sitting around thinking about getting started - not just for the getting of money but for just about anything.

If you have not made up your mind already, promise yourself you will do so as soon as you have finished reading this blog. Better still, this post. Better still, do it right this minute - this 'unforgiving minute'.

Are you going to commit yourself to becoming rich by following this road? Well, are you?

Commit now, or leave such dreams behind.
Begin now, or turn away.

Common Excuses To Not Attempt To Get Rich

The three valid reasons for not attempting to become rich are: (1) I do not wish to get rich; (2) I would lik to be rich I but I have other priorities; and (3) I am too stupid to make the attempt.

The first reason is Teflon-coated and defies challenge - but one wonders just how many who use it would turn down a surprise inheritance of, say, $10 million?

The third reason is conundrum. Those smart enough to know they are none too bright might stand a better chance in getting rich than they imagine. The rich lists of the world contain a far number of succesful but stupid enterpreneurs.

Apart from those listed above, some of which are debatable, there are no other valid reasons why you should not get rich.

In truth, most of the so-called 'reasons' for not pursuing wealth are not reasons at all; they are excuses. Pitiful alibis, half truths and self-serving evasions you have erected to spare yourself from the quiet terror of taking your own financial destiny in your hands and making your dreams concrete reality. They are the children of fear and the parents of a thousand 'if onlys'.

Who is likely to succeed in getting rich?

Anyone in good health and of reasonable intelligence, provided they utterly commit themselves to the journey, can be succesful in getting rich. The commitment is vital.

Tunnel vision helps. Being a bit of an asshole helps. A thick skin helps. Stamina is crucial, as is the capacity to work so hard that even your friends mock you, your lovers despair and your rivals watch furtively from the sidelines, half in awe and half in contempt.

Self-confidence helps, but can be stimulated or acquired  along the way, Tenacity  is an absolute requirement. Luck helps, but only if you don't waste time seeking it. The belief that you have a great idea is not worth shit. Ideas are ten a penny while the ability to execute counts for a great deal more.

The answer to 'Who is likeley to succeed?', perhaps then, is this: not those who want to and not those who need to or those who deserve to, but who utterly determined to, whatever the cost to themselves and to those around them.